Senate confirms Brennan to lead CIA, 63/34

posted at 6:41 pm on March 7, 2013 by Allahpundit

Commenters are posting the names of the Republicans who voted yes on Brennan in the Lindsey Graham thread. I didn’t realize opposing him had become a litmus test; Paul’s filibuster yesterday was designed to squeeze the White House for an answer on drones, not to block Brennan. (Paul himself voted yes on cloture today, which assured that Brennan would ultimately be confirmed, even though he voted no on the final vote.) But here’s the list:

The last name there is the biggest, of course. I guess Rubio thought that, having spoken on the floor twice yesterday in Paul’s defense, he had enough political cover to throw hawks a bone by voting for Brennan. Graham, meanwhile, stated on the floor this morning that he would vote for him as a vote of confidence in the drone program, i.e. as a rebuke to Paul. One other interesting vote: Kelly Ayotte, who often serves as the “third amigo” with McCain and Graham in the vanguard of GOP hawkishness, voted no. Hmmm. Starting to inch away from Maverick and his sidekick in light of the last 24 hours?

The cloture vote went 81/16, by the way. The Republicans who voted yes on that one but no on the final vote:

Little surprised to see Cruz in there but Paul set the baseline by voting yes. As for the Republicans who voted no on both cloture and the final vote: Barrasso, Boozman, Cochran, Crapo, Enzi, Grassley, Heller, Inhofe, Lee, Moran, Risch, Roberts, Sessions, Shelby, Wicker, and of course smilin’ Mitch McConnell, who came to the Senate floor late last night to make sure that all the primary-hungry tea partiers back in Kentucky know that he did indeed stand with Rand. For the next year, there’ll be no more reliably conservative vote in the Senate than McConnell. Enjoy it while it lasts.

By the way, if you’re wondering how Obama’s going to prove to his base that he still cares about due process after being roundly humiliated by Paul yesterday, here’s how:

A son-in-law of Osama bin Laden who served as al Qaeda’s spokesman was arrested in Jordan and then brought to New York in an operation led by Jordanian authorities and the FBI, U.S. government sources said on Thursday.

The sources said Suleiman Abu Ghaith, a militant who appeared in videos representing al Qaeda after the September 11, attacks on New York and Washington in 2001, had initially been picked up in Turkey…

Abu Ghaith is now being held in a detention facility in the New York City area and is expected to be charged and eventually brought to trial in federal court. The trial would most likely be in U.S. District Court in lower Manhattan, only blocks from the site of the World Trade Center, which was destroyed in the September 11 attacks, a law enforcement source said.

The number of Al Qaeda capos I recognize by name has grown very small (most of the A-team has been liquidated in, er, drone strikes) but I do recognize Ghaith. He’s been on the government’s list since shortly after 9/11; you can watch some of the videos that made him famous in counterterror circles at Foreign Policy. Peter King called it a “very significant victory,” which is true if only as a reminder to the rest that the CIA’s still coming for them after more than 10 years. What’s noteworthy here, though, is the venue: After giving up on civilian trials for top jihadis years ago and facing growing disgruntlement about secret “kill lists,” O’s going to prove his by-the-book bona fides by trying Ghaith in federal court. I’m curious to hear Paul’s reaction to that. Republicans are with him on drones, but traditionally they’ve opposed trying 9/11 degenerates in district court. This will get us right back to the “war versus law enforcement” debate on counterterrorism. Just bear one thing in mind: Whatever happens, there’s no chance Ghaith is going free. The risk here for O isn’t that Ghaith will be acquitted and end up back in Yemen ranting about nuking America or whatever, it’s that Obama will be forced to take him back into custody after he’s acquitted and figure out a pretext to keep him locked up. Not so due process-y. The odds of that scenario happening are, admittedly, exceedingly small, but there’s always a chance of a total clusterfark.

“To bring this person to New York City, if that’s what happened, without letting Congress know is a very bad precedent to set,” Graham said. “The Congress has tried to tell the administration that when it comes to people like this we want them to go to Gitmo to be held for interrogation purposes.”

Kelly Ayotte joined him in his criticism, so there goes my theory about her tilting away from him and McCain.

Blowback

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Never understood why the left is more interested in granting due process rights to foreigners in foreign countries who are not entitled due process, than in giving them to US citizens in the US to whom they are owed.

How DARE those filthy conservatives actually expect their representatives to represent them?

sharrukin on March 7, 2013 at 7:05 PM

Drop the victim act. This is chest-puffing posturing and you know it.

There isn’t a single politician or candidate who satisfies all the tests you people have set forth. Many of the tests are mutually exclusive to one another, because – believe it or not – not all self-proclaimed “conservatives” are of one mind on the issues.

The dimmifiscation of this administration is about complete..I don’t if it’s true or not but the former FBI agent John Guandolo said a source told him Brennan converted to Islam when he was in Saudi Arabia..Even if he isn’t a muslim he has said some pretty clueless things about Islam and especially about Jihad…God help this country..we need it

“His conversion to Islam was the culmination of a counterintelligence operation against him to recruit him,” Guandolo asserted. “The fact that foreign intelligence service operatives recruited Mr. Brennan when he was in a very sensitive and senior U.S. government position in a foreign country means that he either a traitor … [or] he has the inability to discern and understand how to walk in those kinds of environments, which makes him completely unfit to the be the director of Central Intelligence.”

“I was going to vote against Brennan, until the filibuster,” Graham, of South Carolina, said Thursday. “I thought Brennan was arrogant, a bit shifty. I am going to vote for Brennan now because it’s become a referendum on the drone program.”

This morning I was freaked out that the GOP was actually in tune with the American people, but the fact that the CIA director was confirmed so much easier than Hagel says I have nothing to fear. Its a shame, I thought we were actually going to have a conversation about the violence our government enacts on citizens and people around the world. I’m less freaked out about a GOP power grab, but I’m more despondent about the possibilities of the political system every producing a genuine critique of power. What to do?

As an aside, every time I read your moniker I smile and remember the face of that race hustler when he said it. It gives me hope because I’ve never met a conservative who ever said anything quite so stupid.

As an aside, every time I read your moniker I smile and remember the face of that race hustler when he said it. It gives me hope because I’ve never met a conservative who ever said anything quite so stupid.

platypus on March 7, 2013 at 7:21 PM

I was watching his show that first night and nearly cracked all of my ribs laughing. Al Sharpton reading the teleprompter was like Lucy and Ethel in the chocolate factory. Damn, I’m going to start laughing uncontrollably…AGAIN! I’m not kidding!

Most people here were willing to accept the liberal north-easterner Mitt Romney so you are full of crap as usual.

As others have suggested, you would be more comfortable as a Democrat.

sharrukin on March 7, 2013 at 7:19 PM

Yeah I find some much crap in their posting today,because today highlights what us “trucons” have been griping about for the last few years. Here we have a victory in the Senate last night, and then two “moderate establishment” a$$es grab defeat from victory and go after their own party harder than the Dems. I am just so fed up. It isn’t the trucons who aren’t into party unity…

Here we have a victory in the Senate last night, and then two “moderate establishment” a$$es grab defeat from victory and go after their own party harder than the Dems. I am just so fed up. It isn’t the trucons who aren’t into party unity…

melle1228 on March 7, 2013 at 7:29 PM

The true nature of RINOs was made very clear with what happened with Sarah Palin. They stood with the Democrats.

That hasn’t changed and today is just more proof of that. John McCain spent most of his career knifing conservatives in the back. Party unity to them means they dictate the terms and conservatives provide votes and cash.

The true nature of RINOs was made very clear with what happened with Sarah Palin. They stood with the Democrats.

That hasn’t changed and today is just more proof of that. John McCain spent most of his career knifing conservatives in the back. Party unity to them means they dictate the terms and conservatives provide votes and cash.

Yep. Brennan loves himself some islamism, though I’m not sure if he’s said that the muzzie call to prayer is the most beautiful sound on Earth … yet. He’ll be a great addition to the CIA.

And Brennan ran the company whose employee did a little highly criminal illegal rummaging around in Barky’s passport records at State during the 2007 primary, ending with Quarles being shot in the head while sitting in his car in his church parking lot.

I actually give kudos to McConnell for showing support while keeping it brief, and at least he backed it up with a No unlike Rubio and Flake.

theperfecteconomist on March 7, 2013 at 6:57 PM

Don’t give any kudos to McConnell, he’s just doing what is politically expedient. He’s up for re-election in 2014 and will be sticking close to Rand Paul. He wants some of that Tea Party support that Paul has to rub off on him. In fact he’s using Paul’s former Campaign Manager for his own re-election:-)

McConnell hired Jesse Benton, who ran Sen. Rand Paul’s (R-Ky.) 2010 victory, in September to head his reelection campaign.

A McConnell aide said Paul is McConnell’s biggest surrogate in the state and his help could quell the possibility of a Tea Party-backed primary challenge.

Bozell has already put out a mil $ ad against McConnell too.

McConnell is the same Reid/Boehner/Obama supporter he’s always been, just another Establishment Republican.

Never understood why the left is more interested in granting due process rights to foreigners in foreign countries who are not entitled due process, than in giving them to US citizens in the US to whom they are owed.

besser tot als rot on March 7, 2013 at 7:10 PM

Obysmal has convoluted “values” and hasn’t figured out yet what America’s position is vis a vis AlQaeda.

Did I miss the Patreus thread? You know, the one about all the newly unredacted Benghazi documents handed over yesterday showing Patreus removed all references to Al Qaida and scrubbed the word “attack” and replaced with “demonstration”?

There isn’t a single politician or candidate who satisfies all the tests you people have set forth.

KingGold on March 7, 2013 at 7:14 PM

Most people here were willing to accept the liberal north-easterner Mitt Romney so you are full of crap as usual.

As others have suggested, you would be more comfortable as a Democrat.

sharrukin on March 7, 2013 at 7:19 PM

No kidding. That’s why most of us sucked it up, plugged our nose and went and voted Romney. Because we’re unreasonable.

We’ve done that now for two RINOs. Maybe you’re satisfied with a half arsed attempt at conservatism, but at some point the battered voter says enough and believes that if they are going to lose at least lose with their principles.

No kidding. That’s why most of us sucked it up, plugged our nose and went and voted Romney. Because we’re unreasonable.

We’ve done that now for two RINOs. Maybe you’re satisfied with a half arsed attempt at conservatism, but at some point the battered voter says enough and believes that if they are going to lose at least lose with their principles.

That has now happened.

kim roy on March 7, 2013 at 9:36 PM

It’s been getting worse every election cycle. For some John McCain in 2008 was the final straw, others couldn’t get on board with Romney, but for many it was the Romney defeat while carrying out the RINO playbook, and then being told even that was the fault of filthy conservatives.

It’s been getting worse every election cycle. For some John McCain in 2008 was the final straw, others couldn’t get on board with Romney, but for many it was the Romney defeat while carrying out the RINO playbook, and then being told even that was the fault of filthy conservatives.

sharrukin on March 7, 2013 at 9:40 PM

Yep.

That’s why it wouldn’t surprise me if they starting seriously pushing Christie at us. That’s about as close to the dems as one can get without formally crossing over.

Shilled for Romney because I felt that Obama was that bad. Will never regret that decision, but that’s it. Never again.

Did I miss the Patreus thread? You know, the one about all the newly unredacted Benghazi documents handed over yesterday showing Patreus removed all references to Al Qaida and scrubbed the word “attack” and replaced with “demonstration”?

Will Americans ever again have this level of courage or will America die?The Battle of Athens: Restoring the Rule of LawVorDaj on March 7, 2013 at 7:07 PM

and ever since, the corrupted cronies worked relentlessly to roll back our rights. To roll back the things we took for granted that had practical uses but in a pinch used to bring down corrupt politicians. Guns you ask? Yeah eventually. But more specifically dynamite. 60 years ago anyone could pick up stick without nary a mother may I? Now it takes all kinds of certifications and licenses to even get near them. The progs have watched and learned. In 60 years no one but the certified and vetted may ever touch a gun. And our Gandhi’s would marvel that people even had a gun at home.

Doesn’t have to be and it won’t if we stand and say no more!! No more whistling away our God -given rights in the name of security or even ‘for the kid’s.

Just bizarre to see this creep heading up the CIA. Even after all that’s transpired over the last four years, this is a new low. A new dark precedent. They’ve actually found the one guy more sleazy, corrupt and anti-American than Eric Holder.

What’s with these yes on cloture and no on confirmation votes? You can’t just vote no and no again? This devil needed to be stopped. Bagel Hegel is just a dope, just a puppet and fitting front-man for this White House. Brennan’s a danger in his own right; probably not controlled by anyone in or close to the White House and answering directly to the Cartel that installed “Obama”.

Marco Rubio SELLS OUT AGAIN. First he has questionable at best attitude towards guns (supports more regulations, when the real problem is MENTAL ISSUES) then his stance on immigration is a problem, and the worst of all? VOTED FOR JOHN BRENNAN?!?!? RUBIO THE RINO IS DONE. OVER!

Are we gonna hear Glenn Beck defend this coward sell out like he did Rand Paul? Oh Rand Paul the massive sellout who voted to confirm 3 RADICAL NUTS for Obama…but “HEY, look he had a filibuster-whoopee!”

The important thing is that McCain is probably going to retire after this term. I say probably because I don’t believe anything a professional politician says. Graham will probably be challenged in a primary by a constitutional conservative the next time he comes up for re-election. Hopefully he can be defeated this time. Rubio is moving to the center postioning himself for a presdential run. He just lost my support. Rand Paul is still his father’s son and until he proves he isn’t the complete flake his father is, he won’t earn my support. I’m very, very concerned about the future. I much fear that Hillary will be our next president, and the country is doomed. (Jeb Bush is a non-factor as far as I am concerned.)